U.S. Title 50 -- War and National Defense, Chapter 15 -- National Security contains, in one place, a collation of most of the law as it pertains to the Central
Intelligence Agency. Most people who write about the CIA and who talk about the CIA -- indeed, many who have served
with the CIA -- have never read this law. It is most significant that the legislation that pertains to war and
national defense is the same legislation that includes all reference to the CIA. It is almost as if the bomb contained
its own live fuse or the gun came with the trigger cocked for action. As we have seen, during the past twenty-five
years the CIA has become the active agent that ignites the military establishment whenever that great mass becomes
supercritical.

Fundamental to the whole concept and character of the
CIA is the statement of the five powers and duties, which appears in Section 403 (d). This is a precise, clear,
and unequivocal delineation of what Congress and the President wanted the Central Intelligence Agency to be. The
language of the law has never been substantively altered; yet in practice the CIA and its Secret Team mentors
have changed it beyond recognition. (This appendix includes all important material relevant to the CIA from the
National Security Act.)

§ 401. Congressional declaration of purpose.

In enacting this legislation, it is the intent of Congress
to provide a comprehensive program for the future security of the United States; to provide for the establishment
of integrated policies and procedures for the departments, agencies, and functions of the Government relating to
the national security; to provide a Department of Defense, including the three military Departments of the
Army, the Navy (including naval aviation and the United States Marine Corps), and the Air Force under the direction,
authority, and control of the Secretary of Defense; to provide that each military department shall be separately
organized under its own Secretary and shall function under the direction, authority, and control of the Secretary
of Defense; to provide for their unified direction under civilian control of the Secretary of Defense, but
not to merge these departments or services; to provide for the establishment of unified or specified combatant
commands, and a clear and direct line of command to such commands; to eliminate unnecessary duplication
in the Department of Defense, and particularly in the field of research and engineering by vesting its overall
direction and control in the Secretary of Defense; to provide more effective, efficient, and economical
administration in the Department of Defense; to provide for the unified strategic direction of the combatant
forces, for their operation under unified command, and for their integration into an efficient team of land, naval,
and air forces but not to establish a single Chief of Staff over the armed forces nor an overall armed forces general
staff. (July 6, 1947, ch. 343, § 2, 61 Stat. 496; Aug. 10, 1949, ch. 412, § 2, 63 Stat. 579;
Aug 6, 1958, Pub. L. 85-599, § 2, 72 Stat. 514)

There is established a council to be known as the National
Security Council (hereinafter in this section referred to as the "Council").

The President of the United States shall preside over
meetings of the Council: Provided, That in his absence he may designate a member of the Council to preside in his place.

The function of the Council shall be to advise the
President with respect to the integration of domestic, foreign, and military policies relating to the national
security so as to enable the military services and the other departments and agencies of the Government to cooperate
more effectively in matters involving the national security.

The Council shall be composed of --

(1) the President;

(2) the Vice President;

(3) the Secretary of State;

(4) the Secretary of Defense;

(5) the Director for Mutual Security;

(6) The Chairman of the National Security Resources
Board; and

(7) the Secretaries and Under Secretaries of other
executive departments and of the military departments, the Chairman of the Munitions Board, and the Chairman of
the Research and Development Board, when appointed by the President by and with the advice and consent of the Senate,
to serve at his pleasure.

(b) Additional functions.

In addition to performing such other functions as the
President may direct, for the purpose of more effectively coordinating the policies and functions of the departments
and agencies of the Government relating to the national security, it shall, subject to the direction of the President,
be the duty of the Council --

(1) to assess and appraise the objectives, commitments,
and risks of the United States in relation to our actual and potential military power, in the interest of national
security, for the purpose of making recommendations to the President in connection therewith; and

(2) to consider policies on matters of common interest
to the departments and agencies of the Government concerned with the national security, and to make recommendations
to the President in connection therewith.

The Council shall have a staff to be headed by a civilian
executive secretary who shall be appointed by the President. The executive secretary, subject to the direction
of the Council, is authorized, subject to the civil-service laws and chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53
of title %, to appoint and fix the compensation of such personnel as may be necessary to perform such duties as
may be prescribed by the Council in connection with the performance of its functions.

(d) Recommendations and reports.

The Council shall, from time to time, make such recommendations,
and such other reports to the President as it deems appropriate or as the President may require. (July 6, 1947,
ch. 343, title I, § 101, 61 Stat. 497; Aug. 10, 1949, ch. 412, § 3, 63 Stat. 579; Oct.
28, 1949, ch. 782, title XI, § 1106 (a), 63 Stat. 972; Oct. 10, 1951, ch. 479, title V, § 501
(e) (1), 65 Stat. 378.)

1949 -- Subsec. (a) Act Aug. 10, 1949, added the Vice
President to the Council, removed the Secretaries of the military departments, to authorize the President to add,
with the consent of the Senate, Secretaries and Under Secretaries of other executive departments, to authorize
the President to add, with the consent of the Senate, Secretaries and Under Secretaries of other executive departments
and of the military department, and the Chairmen of the Munitions Board and the Research and Development Board.

The National Security Council, together with its functions,
records, property, personnel, and unexpended balances of appropriations, allocations, and other funds (available
or to be made available) were transferred to the Executive Office of the President by 1949 Reorg. Plan No. 4, eff.
Aug. 19, 1949, 14 F.R. 5227, 63 Stat. 1067, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employees.

There is established under the National Security Council
a Central Intelligence Agency with a Director of Central Intelligence who shall be the head thereof, and with a
Deputy Director of Central Intelligence who shall act for, and exercise the powers of, the Director during his
absence or disability. The Director and the Deputy Director shall be appointed by the President, by and with the
advice and consent of the Senate, from among the commissioned officers of the armed services, whether in an active
or retired status, or from among individuals in civilian life: Provided,
however, That at no time shall the two positions of the Director
and Deputy Director be occupied simultaneously by commissioned officers of the armed services, whether in active
or retired status.

(1) If a commissioned officer of the armed services
is appointed as Director, or Deputy Director, then --

(A) in the performance of his duties as Director, or
Deputy Director, he shall be subject to no supervision, control, restriction, or prohibition (military or otherwise)
other than would be operative with respect to him if he were a civilian in no way connected with the Department
of the Army, the Department of the Navy, the Department of the Air Force, or the armed services or any component
thereof; and

(B) he shall not possess or exercise any supervision,
control, powers, or functions (other than such as he possesses, or is authorized or directed to exercise, as Director,
or Deputy Director) with respect to the armed services or any component thereof, the Department of the Army, the
Department of the Navy, or the Department of the Air Force, or any branch, bureau, unit, or division thereof, or
with respect to any of the personnel (military or civilian) of any of the foregoing.

(2) Except as provided in paragraph (1) of this subsection,
the appointment to the office of Director, or Deputy Director, of a commissioned officer of the armed services,
and his acceptance of and service in such office, shall in no way affect any status, office, rank, or grade he
may occupy or hold in the armed services, or any emolument, perquisite, right, privilege, or benefit incident to
or arising out of any such status, office, rank, or grade. Any such commissioned officer shall, while serving in
the office of Director, or Deputy Director, continue to hold rank and grade not lower than that in which serving
at the time of his appointment and to receive the military pay and allowances (active or retired, as the case may
be, including personal money allowance) payable to a commissioned officer of his grade and length of service for
which the appropriate department shall be reimbursed from any funds available to defray the expenses of the Central
Intelligence Agency. He also shall be paid by the Central Intelligence Agency from such funds an annual compensation
at a rate equal to the amount by which the compensation established for such position exceeds the amount of his
annual military pay and allowances.

(3) The rank or grade of any such commissioned officer
shall, during the period in which such commissioned officer occupies the office of Director of Central Intelligence,
or Deputy Director of Central Intelligence, be in addition to the numbers and percentages otherwise authorized
and appropriated for the armed service of which he is a member.

(c) Termination of employment of officers and employees;
effect on right of subsequent employment.

Notwithstanding the provisions of section 652 of Title
5, or the provisions of any other law, the Director of Central Intelligence may, in his discretion, terminate the
employment of any officer or employee of the Agency whenever he shall deem such termination necessary or advisable
in the interests of the United States, but such termination shall not affect the right of such officer or employee
to seek or accept employment in any other department or agency of the Government if declared eligible for such
employment by the United States Civil Service Commission.

(d) Powers and duties.

For the purpose of coordinating the intelligence activities
of the several Government departments and agencies in the interest of national security, it shall be the duty of
the Agency, under the direction of the National Security Council --

(1) to advise the National Security Council in matters
concerning such intelligence activities of the Government departments and agencies as relate to national security;

(2) to make recommendations to the National Security
Council for the coordination of such intelligence activities of the departments and agencies of the Government
as relate to the national security;

(3) to correlate and evaluate intelligence relating
to the national security, and provide for the appropriate dissemination of such intelligence within the Government
using where appropriate existing agencies and facilities: Provided, That the Agency shall have no police, subpoena, law-enforcement powers, or internal-security
functions: Provided further,
That the departments and other agencies of the Government shall continue to collect, evaluate, correlate, and disseminate
departmental intelligence: And provided further, That the Director of Central Intelligence shall be responsible for protecting intelligence
sources and methods from unauthorized disclosure;

(4) to perform, for the benefit of the existing intelligence
agencies, such additional services of common concern as the National Security Council determines can be more efficiently
accomplished centrally;

(5) to perform such other functions and duties related
to intelligence affecting the national security as the National Security Council may from time to time direct.

(e) Inspection of intelligence of other departments.

To the extent recommended by the National Security
Council and approved by the President, such intelligence of the departments and agencies of the Government, except
as hereinafter provided, relating to the national security shall be open to the inspection of the Director of Central
Intelligence, and such intelligence as relates to the national security and is possessed by such departments and
other agencies of the Government, except as hereinafter provided, shall be made available to the Director of Central
Intelligence for correlation, evaluation, and dissemination: Provided,
however, That upon the written request of the Director of Central
Intelligence, the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation shall make available to the Director of Central
Intelligence such information for correlation, evaluation, and dissemination as may be essential to the national
security.

(2) the personnel, property, and records of the Central
Intelligence Group are transferred to the Central Intelligence Agency, and such Group shall cease to exist. Any
unexpended balances of appropriations, allocations, or other funds available or authorized to be made available
for such Group shall be available and shall be authorized to be made available in like manner for expenditure by
the Agency.

By virtue of the authority vested in me as President
of the United States, it is ordered as follows:

SECTION 1. There is hereby established the Presidents
Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board, hereinafter referred to as "the Board". The Board shall:

(1) advise the President concerning the objectives,
conduct, management and coordination of the various activities making up the overall national intelligence effort;

(2) conduct a continuing review and assessment of foreign
intelligence and related activities in which the Central Intelligence Agency and other Government departments and
agencies are engaged;

(3) receive, consider and take appropriate action with
respect to matters identified to the Board, by the Central Intelligence Agency and other Government departments
and agencies of the intelligence community, in which the support of the Board will further the effectiveness of
the national intelligence effort; and

(4) report to the President concerning the Boards findings
and appraisals, and make appropriate recommendations for actions to achieve increased effectiveness of the Governments
foreign intelligence effort in meeting national intelligence needs.

SEC. 2. In order to facilitate performance of the Boards
functions, the Director of Central Intelligence and the heads of all other departments and agencies shall make
available to the Board all information with respect to foreign intelligence and related matters which the Board
may require for the purpose of carrying out its responsibilities to the President in accordance with the terms
of this Order. Such information made available to the Board shall be given all necessary security protection in
accordance with the terms and provisions of applicable laws and regulations.

SEC. 3. Members of the Board shall be appointed by
the President from among persons outside the Government, qualified on the basis of knowledge and experience in
matters relating to the national defense and security, or possessing other knowledge and abilities which may be
expected to contribute to the effective performance of the Boards duties. The members of the Board shall receive
such compensation and allowances, consonant with law, as may be prescribed hereafter.

SEC 4. The Board shall have a staff headed by an Executive
Secretary, who shall be appointed by the President and shall receive such compensation and allowances, consonant
with law, as may be prescribed by the Board. The Executive Secretary shall be authorized, subject to the approval
of the Board and consonant with law, to appoint and fix the compensation of such personnel as may be necessary
for performance of the Boards duties.

SEC. 5. Compensation and allowances of the Board, the
Executive Secretary, and members of the staff, together with other expenses arising in connection with the work
of the Board, shall be paid from the appropriation appearing under the heading "Special Projects" in
the Executive Office Appropriation Act, 1969, Public Law 90-350, 82 Stat. 195, and, to the extent permitted by
law, from any corresponding appropriation which may be made for subsequent years. Such payments shall be made without
regard to the provisions of section 3681 of the Revised Statues and section 9 of the Act of March 4, 1909, 35 Stat.
1027 (31 U.S.C. 672 and 673)

(a) In the performance of its functions the Central
Intelligence Agency is authorized to exercise the authorities contained in sections 151 (c) (1)-(6), (10), (1),
(15), (17), 155 and 159 of Title 41.

(b) In the exercise of the authorities granted in subsection
(a) of this section, the term "Agency head" shall mean the Director, the Deputy Director, or the Executive
of the Agency.

(c) The determinations and decisions provided in subsection
(a) of this section to be made by the Agency head may be made with respect to individual purchases and contracts
or with respect to classes of purchases or contracts, and shall be final. Except as provided in subsection (d)
of this section, the Agency head is authorized to delegate his powers provided in this section, including the making
of such determinations and decisions, in his discretion and subject to his direction to any other officer or officers
or officials of the Agency.

(d) The power of the Agency head to make the determinations
or decisions specified in sections 151 (c) (1), (15), and 154 (a) of Title 41 shall not be delegable. Each determination
or decision required by sections 151 (c) (12), (15), 153, or 154 (a) of Title 41, shall be based upon written findings
made by the official making such determinations, which findings shall be final and shall be available within the
Agency for a period of at least six years following the date of the determination. (June 20, 1949, ch. 227, §
3, 63 Stat. 208.)

§ 403f. Same; general authorities of Agency.

In the performance of its functions, the Central Intelligence
Agency is authorized to --

(a) Transfer to and receive from other Government agencies
such sums as may be approved by the Office of Management and Budget, for the performance of any of the functions
or activities authorized under sections 403 and 405 of this title, and any other Government agency is authorized
to transfer to or receive from the Agency such sums without regard to any provisions of law limiting or prohibiting
transfers between appropriations. Sums transferred to the Agency in accordance with this paragraph may be expended
for the purposes and under the authority of sections 403a to 403c, 403e to 403h, and 403j of this title without
regard to limitations of appropriations from which transferred;

(b) Exchange funds without regard to section 543 of
Title 31;

(c) Reimburse other Government agencies for services
of personnel assigned to the Agency, and such other Government agencies are authorized, without regard to provisions
of law to the contrary, so to assign or detail any officer or employee for duty with the Agency;

(d) Authorize couriers and guards designated by the
Director to carry firearms when engaged in transportation of confidential documents and materials affecting the
national defense and security;

The act of June 30, 1932, as amended, referred to in subsec.
(c), is the Legislative Branch Appropriation Act, 1933, act June 30, 1932, ch. 314, 47 Stat. 393, and is classified
to section 303b of Title 40, Public Buildings, Property, and Works.

CODIFICATION

Section was not enacted as a part of the National Security
Act of 1947 which comprises this chapter.

§ 403g. Same; protection of nature of Agencys
functions.

In the interests of the security of the foreign intelligence
activities of the United States and in order further to implement the proviso of section 403 (d) (3) of this title
that the Director of Central Intelligence shall be responsible for protecting intelligence sources and methods
from unauthorized disclosure, the Agency shall be exempted from the provisions of section 654 of Title 5, and the
provisions of any other law which require the publication or disclosure of the organization, functions, names,
official titles, salaries, or numbers of personnel employed by the Agency: Provided, That in furtherance of this section, the Director of the Office of Management and
Budget shall make no reports to the Congress in connection with the Agency under section 947(b) of Title 5. (June
20, 1949, ch. 227, § 6, formerly § 7, 63 Stat. 211, renumbered July 7, 1958, Pub. L. 85-507, § 21
(b) (2), 72 Stat. 337; 1970 Reorg. Plan No. 2, eff. July 1, 1970, 35 F.R. 7959, 84 Stat. --.)

§ 403h. Same; admission of essential aliens;
limitation on number.

Whenever the Director, the Attorney General, and the
Commissioner of Immigration shall determine that the entry of a particular alien into the United States for permanent
residence is in the interest of national security or essential to the furtherance of the national intelligence
mission, such alien and his immediate family shall be given entry into the United States for permanent residence
without regard to their inadmissibility under the immigration or any other laws and regulations, or to the failure
to comply with such laws and regulations pertaining to admissibility: Provided, That the number of aliens and members of their immediate families entering the
United States under the authority of this section shall in no case exceed one hundred persons in any one fiscal
year. (June 20, 1949, ch. 227, § 7, formerly § 8, 63 Stat. 212, renumbered July 7, 1958, Pub. L. 85-507,
§ 21 (b) (2), 72 Stat. 337.)

CODIFICATION

Section was not enacted as a part of the National Security
Act of 1947 which comprises this chapter.

§ 403j. Central Intelligence Agency: appropriations;
expenditures.

(a) Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, sums
made available to the Agency by appropriation or otherwise may be expended for purposes necessary to carry out
its functions, including --

(1) personal services, including personal services
without regard to limitations on types of persons to be employed, and rent at the seat of government and elsewhere;
health-service program as authorized by section 150 of Title 5; rental of news-reporting services;
purchase or rental and operation of photographic, reproduction, cryptographic, duplication and printing
machines, equipment and devices, and radio-receiving and radio-sending equipment; purchase, maintenance,
operation, repair, and hire of passenger motor vehicles, and aircraft, and vessels of all kinds; subject
to policies established by the Director, transportation of officers and employees of the Agency in Government-owned
automotive equipment between their domiciles and places of employment, where such personnel are engaged in work
which makes such transportation necessary, and transportation in such equipment, to and from school of children
of Agency personnel who have quarters for themselves and their families at isolated stations outside the continental
United States where adequate public or private transportation is not available; printing and binding; purchase,
maintenance, and cleaning of firearms, including purchase, storage, and maintenance of ammunition; subject
to policies established by the Director, expenses of travel in connection with, and expenses incident to attendance
at meetings of professional, technical, scientific, and other similar organizations when such attendance would
be a benefit in the conduct of the work of the Agency; association and library dues; payment of premiums
or costs of surety bonds for officers or employees without regard to the provisions of section 14 of Title 6;
payment of claims pursuant to Title 8; acquisition of necessary land and the clearing of such land;
construction of buildings and facilities without regard to sections 59 and 67 of Title 40; repair, rental,
operation, and maintenance of buildings, utilities, facilities, and appurtenances; and

(2) supplies, equipment, and personnel and contractual
services otherwise authorized by law and regulations, when approved by the Director.

(b) The sums made available to the Agency may be expended
without regard to the provisions of law and regulations relating to the expenditure of Government funds;
and for objects of a confidential, extraordinary, or emergency nature, such expenditures to be accounted for solely
on the certificate of the Director and every such certificate shall be deemed a sufficient voucher for the amount
therein certified. (June 20, 1949, ch. 227, § 8, formerly § 10, 63 Stat. 212, renumbered July 7, 1958,
Pub. L. 85-507, § 21 (b) (2), 72 Stat. 337)

REFERENCES IN TEXT

Sections 259 and 267 of Title 40, referred to in text,
was repealed by Pub. L. 86-249, § 17 (12), Sept. 9, 1959, 73 Stat. 485. See chapter 12 of Title 40, Public
Buildings, Property and Works.

CODIFICATION

Section was not enacted as a part of the National Security
Act of 1947 which comprises this chapter.

(a) The Director of the Office of Emergency Preparedness,
the Director of Central Intelligence, and the National Security Council, acting through its Executive Secretary,
are authorized to appoint such advisory committees and to employ, consistent with other provisions of this Act,
such part-time advisory personnel as they may deem necessary in carrying out their respective functions and the
functions of agencies under their control. Persons holding other offices or positions under the United States for
which they receive compensation, while serving as members of such committees, shall receive no additional compensation
for such service. Other members of such committees and other part-time advisory personnel so employed may serve
without compensation or may receive compensation at a rate not to exceed $50 for each day of service, as determined
by the appointing authority.

(b) Service of an individual as a member of any such
advisory committee, or in any other part-time capacity for a department or agency hereunder, shall not be considered
as service bringing such individual within the provisions of sections 281, 283, or 284 of Title 18, unless the
act of such individual, which by such section is made unlawful when performed by an individual referred to in such
section, is with respect to any particular matter which directly involves a department or agency which such person
is advising or in which such department or agency is directly interested. (July 26, 1947, ch. 343, title III, §
303, 61 Stat. 507; Aug. 10, 1949, ch. 41, § 10(c), 63 Stat. 585; Sept. 3, 1954, ch. 1263, §
8, 68 Stat. 1228.)

§ 407. Study or plan of surrender; use of appropriations.

No part of the funds appropriated in any act shall
be used to pay (1) any person, firm, or corporation, or any combinations of persons, firms, or corporations, to
conduct a study or to plan when and how or in what circumstances the Government of the United States should surrender
this country and its people to any foreign power, (2) the salary or compensation of any employee or official of
the Government of the united States who proposes or contracts or who has entered into contracts for the making
of studies or plans for the surrender by the government of the United States of this country and its people to
any foreign power in any event or under any circumstances. (Pub. L. 85-766, ch. XVI, § 1602, Aug. 27, 1958,
72 Stat. 884.)

CODIFICATION

Section was not enacted as part of the National Security
Act of 1947, which comprises this chapter.

§ 409. Definitions of military departments.

(a) The term "Department of the Army" as
used in this Act shall be construed to mean the Department of the Army at the seat of the government and all field
headquarters, forces, reserve components, installations, activities, and functions under the control or supervision
of the Department of the Army.

(b) The term "Department of the Navy" as
used in this Act shall be construed to mean the Department of the Navy at the seat of the government; the
headquarters, United States Marine Corps; the entire operating forces of the united States Navy, including
naval aviation, and of the United States Marine Corps, including the reserve components of such forces;
all field activities, headquarters, forces, bases, installations, activities, and functions under the control or
supervision of the Department of the Navy; and the United States Coast Guard when operating as a part of
the Navy pursuant to law.

(c) The term "Department of the Air Force"
as used in this Act shall be construed to mean the Department of the Air Force at the seat of the government and
all field headquarters, forces, reserve components, installations, activities, and functions under the control
or supervision of the Department of the Air Force. (July 26, 1947, ch. 343, title II, §§ 205(c), 206(a),
207(c), 61 Stat. 501, 502.)